


Beast Within

by orphan_account



Category: Original Work
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-21
Updated: 2018-12-21
Packaged: 2019-09-23 22:51:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 619
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17089247
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: Every monster is different, because every person is different, and thus the ways which we live with them will vary. But there is one constant: it cannot, will not, be ignored. You must interact with it, accept it, to achieve any semblance of inner peace.





	Beast Within

Everyone has a monster living inside them. It is one of the many prices we pay for being human, for being alive and conscious. For surviving our childhoods, experiencing things too complicated and difficult to understand at too young an age. Having a beast is human nature: it cannot be escaped, ignored, or bullied into submission.

Of course, this doesn’t mean some people don’t try to escape, ignore, or bully their monsters. It never ends well.

Every sensible person knows that you must find a way to peacefully coexist with the demons that plague us. Every monster is different, because every person is different, and thus the ways which we live with them will vary. But there is one constant: it cannot,  _ will not, _ be ignored. You must interact with it, accept it, to achieve any semblance of inner peace.

Some people coax their creature into a cage, throwing a tarp over it and only approaching with it when it begins to rage, embittered by the rejection and solitude forced upon it. The human can be bitten and hurt if not careful during these emotional tempests, as the beast is not quite used to being seen. This is less than ideal: just another way the human tries to deny the creature its existence.

Worse yet, others simply let it run loose, without boundaries of any sort. The beast will run rampant, getting into places it truly does not belong, tearing and rending anything it can get its teeth on and making a general mess of things. Again, this is not ideal.

The ideal way to coexist with your monster is to keep it caged, but not in a cage so small it has no room to stand or turn around. The confinement must be tolerable: cruelty to the animal is cruelty to yourself. Additionally, you cannot cover its cage with any sort of blanket or tarp: you must not deny its existence or power. Violent and pitiful as the creature appears, it did not choose its nature any more than you chose yours.

Ideally, you will interact with the monster often and gently enough it does not feel abandoned or vilified. It is best to interact with the animal regularly, when it is not raging. It should be released from its cage and gently coaxed into a muzzle, if needed. You should not be fearful: the beast is part of you, and truly does not wish to hurt.

While it is out, you may do any number of things, depending on its individual needs and temperament. Some simply need to be seen and acknowledged, not as an evil foreign entity but as an important part of your own ego. Others need more attention, desiring you to perhaps stroke its face and assure it that it is accepted and needed. Loved, even. No matter how grisly its appearance, you must be ready and willing to provide it comfort. It is an important part of you, after all. To deny the creature would be to deny yourself.

Some monsters have a stronger urge to fight, to tear and destroy, and must be soothed and pacified now and doted on later; there is always time to calm the beast. There is no such thing as a monster too strong or violent to coexist with. A human cannot create and contain a monster too strong to bond with.

Of course, there is no complete taming of the creature. Its very nature is dark and brooding, its lifeblood made up of the things we find repulsive and evil. But even with its feral nature, it is imperative that it be acknowledged, treated with respect, and accepted.

To deny the beast is to deny yourself.

**Author's Note:**

> Alternative titles: On the Defense of Darkfic, On the Containment and Care of Beasts
> 
> Ever since the archive requested donations, and was angrily attacked on Tumblr for it, and especially on the eve of the great Tumblr Nsfw Purge, I've been doing a lot of thinking and reading up on my fandom history. As someone who is nearing the ripe old age of twenty-three, and been participating (lurking, more like) in various fandoms since twelve, it's equal parts frustrating and disheartening to see the direction that fandom has been going the last few years.
> 
> People who write, read, and enjoy darkfic and other "unapproved" or "dirty" pieces of fanwork are being violently smeared. It's sad, because dark, edgy fanfiction helped me in ways that I can't even begin to describe when I was a young teen, struggling with my emerging queerness and faltering belief in God and religion. I was very homeschooled and sheltered, and had it not been for the internet, I would have never known that my dark, "disgusting" fantasies were quite normal and harmless.
> 
> To see fandom turning so violent against the very same type of creator that helped make me feel normal is wounding to me. The "Anti-" movement is a very disturbing trend to me, much more disturbing that the darkest of darkfics I've ever read.
> 
> I truly believe everyone has a sort of beast inside them, and it's a shame for people to deny the poor stupid animal. It can't help itself, and fiction is a safe place to engage with the monster, a way to validate it and yourself without harming anyone.
> 
> Dark fanworks helped me identify the beast, become less afraid of it, and accept it. It's not such a scary thing when you let it indulge in harmless writing or reading, when you realize it does not have quite the power over you that it seems to. It's not working against you; it's an important, valid part of your psyche that must be embraced.


End file.
